POV: Elior
Cana had been unusually quiet for the past few days.
That alone was suspicious.
Normally, she could turn almost any situation into an excuse for food, cards, or some kind of mischief.
But lately, she'd been watching.
She watched me train.
She watched Erza practice her swordsmanship.
She watched Laxus spar with other guild members.
And whenever she thought nobody was looking, she'd stare at her own hands.
I noticed it one afternoon at Fairy Tail.
Cana was sitting at the table, shuffling a small stack of cards.
She wasn't playing.
She was simply moving them between her fingers.
I sat down beside her.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
"That's not true."
She frowned.
"I'm fine."
I looked at the cards.
"You've been staring at those for ten minutes."
"So?"
"So something's bothering you."
Cana sighed.
"You notice too much."
"It's a useful habit."
She shuffled the cards again.
"Everyone is training."
I waited.
"Laxus is always training. Erza started training seriously. You train all the time."
She looked down.
"And I'm not doing anything."
I smiled slightly.
"You're five."
"So is Erza."
"She's also five."
Cana frowned.
"Exactly."
I leaned back.
"Are you saying you want to train?"
She hesitated.
Then nodded.
"I don't want to always be the one everyone protects."
That answer was more serious than I'd expected.
I looked at her for a moment.
"You don't have to become strong just because everyone else is."
"I know."
She looked toward the guild floor.
"But I want to be useful."
I smiled.
"That's different."
She nodded.
"I want to become a proper Fairy Tail mage."
There was no joke in her voice this time.
I reached over and tapped the cards in her hand.
"Then let's figure out what kind of mage you want to become."
She looked at me.
"What do you mean?"
"You don't have to fight like me."
I pointed toward Erza, who was sitting nearby.
"You don't have to fight like Erza."
Then toward Laxus.
"And you definitely don't have to fight like Laxus."
Cana laughed.
"Good."
"Find something that suits you."
She looked at the cards again.
"I like these."
"Then let's start there."
Her eyes brightened.
"You'll teach me?"
"I can help."
We went outside.
Cana brought her cards with her.
I had seen her use them casually before, but she had never really trained with them.
She spread several cards across the ground.
"These are just normal cards?"
"Some of them."
She picked one up.
"Mom gave me these."
I nodded.
"Then we'll work with what you have."
I stood several meters away.
"Try throwing one."
"At you?"
"At the target."
I pointed toward a small wooden post.
Cana nodded.
She took a card between two fingers.
Then threw it.
The card flew through the air.
It missed the post completely.
Cana stared.
I tried not to laugh.
"Don't."
"I didn't say anything."
"Your face did."
I smiled.
"Again."
She threw another.
This one hit the edge of the post before falling.
"Better."
Cana's eyes lit up.
"I hit it!"
"Technically."
"That counts."
"It does."
She continued.
Again.
Again.
Again.
Her accuracy slowly improved.
Eventually, she managed to hit the center of the post.
She jumped.
"I did it!"
"Good."
She grinned.
"Again."
I smiled.
She was already enjoying herself.
After a while, I changed the exercise.
"Now put a little magic into the card."
Cana looked confused.
"How?"
"Don't force it."
I held out my hand.
"Think of your magic as something you're guiding into the card rather than pushing."
She closed her eyes.
A small amount of magical energy gathered around her fingers.
It flickered.
Then disappeared.
Cana frowned.
"I can't."
"You can."
"It keeps disappearing."
"Because you're trying too hard."
She looked annoyed.
"I am not."
"You are."
I smiled.
"Relax."
She took a breath.
This time, she didn't force it.
The magic slowly gathered around the card.
A faint glow appeared.
Cana's eyes widened.
"I did it."
"You did."
She smiled.
Then the card suddenly burst with a tiny pop.
Cana jumped.
"What was that?!"
I laughed.
"You put too much magic into it."
"It exploded!"
"It barely exploded."
"That was still an explosion!"
I picked up the card.
It was slightly singed.
"Congratulations."
"For what?"
"Your first magical accident."
She stared at the card.
Then laughed.
"That was actually kind of fun."
"I thought you'd say that."
We continued for another hour.
Cana's control was still rough, but she was learning quickly.
She wasn't naturally precise like Erza.
She wasn't overwhelming like Laxus.
And she certainly didn't have my ridiculous magical capacity.
But she had something else.
Creativity.
She experimented.
She tried different ways of throwing the cards.
She quickly discovered that changing the angle could alter their trajectory.
She even managed to combine two cards together to create a stronger magical effect.
I watched her carefully.
"You know…"
"What?"
"You might actually be good at this."
She grinned.
"Of course I am."
"Your confidence came back quickly."
"It never left."
I laughed.
A voice came from behind us.
"Can I try?"
Erza walked into the training area.
Cana looked at her.
"Sure."
Erza picked up one of the cards.
"What do I do?"
"Throw it at the target."
Erza threw it.
It hit the center immediately.
Cana stared.
Erza looked at the card.
"Was that good?"
Cana crossed her arms.
"Don't show off."
"I wasn't."
I laughed.
"Both of you are ridiculous."
Erza smiled.
Cana handed her another card.
"Try this one."
Erza threw it.
This time, she missed.
Cana immediately smiled.
"Ha!"
Erza looked at her.
"You're happy I missed?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because now we're even."
Erza smiled.
"Okay."
The two girls continued taking turns.
It wasn't really a serious training session anymore.
It was just fun.
And maybe that was exactly what Cana needed.
She didn't need to prove herself today.
She just needed to begin.
Later, we returned to the guild.
Laxus noticed the cards in Cana's hands.
"You started training?"
Cana nodded proudly.
"Yep."
"Card Magic?"
"Yep."
Laxus looked at her for a moment.
"Good."
Cana blinked.
"That's it?"
"What else should I say?"
"I don't know."
He shrugged.
"If you want to get stronger, train."
Cana smiled.
"That's what I'm doing."
Erza sat beside her.
"We trained together."
Laxus looked at the two girls.
"Then keep going."
Cana smiled.
"I will."
I watched them from the counter.
It was interesting seeing all of them develop in different ways.
Laxus wanted to surpass me.
Erza wanted to become strong enough to stand beside us.
And now Cana had finally decided to find her own path.
None of them needed to become like me.
That was the important part.
Strength wasn't about copying someone else's journey.
It was about finding something worth becoming stronger for.
That evening, Cana sat beside me while we ate.
She was unusually quiet again.
"You okay?"
She nodded.
"Yeah."
Then she smiled.
"I think I like training."
"I figured."
"And I'm going to get really strong."
"I believe you."
She looked at me.
"Really?"
"Really."
She smiled.
Then she leaned against my shoulder.
"Thanks, El ni-san."
I smiled.
"Anytime."
Across the table, Erza was eating her dessert.
She looked at Cana.
"Then we'll train together tomorrow."
Cana nodded.
"Deal."
Luna climbed onto my lap.
"Kyuu."
I scratched behind her ears.
Another path had begun.
And somehow, I had a feeling all three of them were going to make my life considerably more difficult.
I smiled.
I couldn't wait.